Nigerian On-air personality, Dotun ‘Do2dtun’ Kayode, has called out media company, Soundcity for allegedly owing its staff salaries spanning the past eight months.
Dotun disclosed this in a series of tweets on X empathizing with his fellow OAPs.
“My friends and colleagues at Soundcity, how do you guys cope? No salary for 8 months? Mehn that’s crazy!!!!” he wrote in one tweet
My friends and colleagues at Soundcity, how do you guys cope?
No salary for 8 months ? Mehn that’s crazy!!!!
— Do2dtun Energy gAD (@iamDo2dtun) January 8, 2025
In another, he further rebuked the music station tagging them “cruel and inhumane”.
“It’s not by force to open a radio station. Owing your staff for 8 months is very cruel and inhumane. You don’t need a soothsayer to tell you this,” he wrote.
It’s not by force to open a radio station. Owing your staffs for 8 months is very cruel and inhumane. You don’t need a soothsayer to tell you this
— Do2dtun Energy gAD (@iamDo2dtun) January 8, 2025
Meanwhile, RadioGuide NG, an online radio community also called out Group8, the parent company of SoundCity, Urban96, and some other radio and television stations over unpaid salaries. Their statement partly read,
Group8’s got quite a reputation, and genuinely, we would like to know.. quite honestly, how those who work there are doing. Really, how are you doing? Are you good? When last did you get paid? It’s essential to have these conversations.
Why do we wait till it’s really bad, till when people are at their final oxygen bag before doing the right thing? Why do we allow this media shouts to go public before doing the right thing?!
Group8’s got quite a reputation, and genuinely, we would like to know.. quite honestly, how those who work there are doing.
Really, how are you doing? Are you good?
When last did you get paid?
It’s essential to have these conversations..— RadioGuide NG (@radioguideng) January 7, 2025
Similarly, drealeve, a radio presenter with Urban96 radio station accused the station of failing to pay staff salaries over the past eight months.
The OAP said many have resigned out of frustration, while also accusing the company’s CEO of “spending money on baseless things”
Is There Legislation That Protects Nigerian Employees?
In 2023, the House of Representatives proposed a bill to criminalise non-payment or failure to pay salaries by employers of labour and corporate bodies.
Section 7 (1) of the bill titled “The Employees Remuneration Protection Bill, 2023” provided that it is unlawful for any employer to “refuse or neglect to pay the remuneration of his employees, as provided under this Act,”.
The bill also sought to enforce a prison term of three to six months for employers found guilty of failing to pay the salaries of their workers.
Meanwhile, in 2022 another piece of legislation titled ‘A Bill for an Act to Prohibit Late Payment, Non-Payment and Underpayment of Workers’ Wages, Pension and Other Emolument in Nigeria, and Prescribes Penalties for Violations.’ passed for second reading.
The bill sought to impose a penalty on employers who owed staff wages or pensions for more than 60 days.
